JAMES
LIVING THE REAL LIFE:
CULTIVATING A FAITH THAT WORKS
IN LIGHT OF HIS COMING
JAMES 5:1-12
INTRODUCTION
Open your Bible to James chapter 5. Of course, this is the last chapter of the book of James; and the normative way that the New Testament writers ended their letters was to tie up some loose ends - some more so than others - so that often times there are a lot of seemingly random thoughts at the close of a book. This is particularly true of this early Christian letter. There is, however, a hint of similarity in the subject matter of vv.1-12. So that is the portion of Scripture we will look at today.
James, as we have heard many times throughout our study, is concerned with genuine faith. He deals with practical issues that reveal our true colors, one way or the other. We have seen encouraging words intended to strengthen the faithful; and hard, poignant rebukes intended to wake up the pretenders. In our passage today we will see both of these things. In fact, we will see these things to the extreme, so to speak. The rebuke we are about to read is not for the fainthearted. And equally as moving, the comforting word we will see should encourage any believer in Jesus Christ enduring any set of circumstances. The common thread that ties them together is the return of Jesus Christ - that future point in history when the resurrected and glorified Christ will physically return to earth to set up the eternal state. Now, there is no sophisticated eschatological treatise here. There is no systematic explanation of all the details that relate to that glorious end time. There is simply a statement of the reality of Christ’s return and an explanation of how that ought to compel us to live in certain ways. Christ’s return will bring judgment for some, relief to others, and eternal closure to all. So there are some principles that need to be heard and adhered to. Let’s take a look at the text, then. James 5:1-12 says:
1 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. 4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.
7 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9 Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door. 10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.
The first thing we see here is a very harsh rebuke in vv.1-6. It is a word of warning for the rich: judgment is coming.
A WORD OF WARNING FOR THE RICH: JUDGMENT IS COMING (VV.1-6)
James writes: Come now, you rich…
This, of course, is not the first time James has addressed the wealthy. In chapter 1 he told the rich believers in the churches to glory in their humiliation; that is, to rejoice in their trials because they keep them grounded and keep them from thinking that their riches profit them in any sort of lasting way. The rich, like everyone else, will fade away; and their money is helpless to prevent this. In chapter 2 he rebukes his readers for showing favoritism to the wealthy who attended their assembly. He reminds them that as a general principle, it is the poor and lowly in this world whom God has chosen to inherit eternal riches. In chapter 4 he reprimands those businessmen who were so consumed with profit that they left God out of their plans. Here in chapter 5 he builds on that theme. “Come now you rich…come now those of you who have refused to acknowledge God’s supremacy in your lives and have made profit your god - let me tell you what your fate is.”
We must again note that not all rich people are in view here. Men and women who are wealthy can be, and are a part of the true church. There is a certain kind of wealthy person with which James is concerned. He’s addressing the kind of wealthy people who have idolized their belongings and are servants not of God and Christ, but of material possessions. Christ taught his disciples in Luke 16:13 that:
13 No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
So James is writing to those wealthy people who were associated with the church, but were clearly unbelievers because their allegiances were to the dollar bill. Or in that time, the coin, the land, and the livestock. Their primary longing was to pursue “the Benjamins”. They were all about the Benjamins; as one of the secular musical voices of our day has so blatantly described his desires. They had ignored Jesus’ exhortation recorded in Matthew 6:
19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
So the issue is not the money. Proverbs 10:22 says:
22 The blessing of the LORD makes rich…
Wealth is a blessing from God. The issue then, is one’s view of wealth. Where does it rank in the list of priorities? For these people, it was at the very top of the list. They were guilty of loving money, which the Apostle Paul says causes all kinds of evil. What was the warning to these specific rich people then? It was that judgment is on its way. He tells them in v.1 to:
…weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you.
What miseries would soon come upon them? The miseries described by Jesus in Luke 6:24:
24 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. 25 “Woe to you who are full now, for you shall be hungry. “Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.”
The idea is that they were enjoying their riches in this life, but all that awaited them in the next life was pain and sorrow; because their money was their god. And ultimately this misery of judgment will occur when Jesus returns.
So let’s look at why judgment was on its way. What was it that these wealthy people did that caused James to warn them? We’ll call these the reasons for impending judgment. The first was that they hoarded their wealth needlessly.
REASONS FOR IMPENDING JUDGMENT:
THEY HOARDED THEIR WEALTH NEEDLESSLY (VV.2-3)
Listen to vv.2-3 again:
2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.
These people had so much stuff they couldn’t possibly use it all. It says that their riches had rotted and their clothes were moth-eaten. In other words they had so much money that they couldn’t spend it all - so it was laying around in a useless stack of nothingness. They had so much clothing that they couldn’t wear it all - so it was being eaten by moths. And James writes that this useless collection of materials will be evidence against them when they are judged by Christ; evidence of who their true god was. Their flesh being eaten by fire is a picture of the agony that awaited them. But not only are they rebuked for their hoarding of materials, they are rebuked for laying up these treasures in the last days. In the New Testament, that phrase “the last days” describes the time period between Christ’s ascension and his return. How amazing is it that these people were gathering and gathering with no regard for God or others even as the day of judgment drew closer and closer.
Now, even for us as believers in Christ, this is a sobering reminder not to needlessly gather wealth or materials that we will never use. It’s been humorously said that “Many people are buying things they don’t need with money they don’t have to impress people they don’t like.” We must avoid this trap of hoarding worthless stuff. We are not talking about saving here. There is nothing wrong with saving money. In fact, Proverbs 13:22 says:
22 A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children…
It is good for us to save. It is good for us to be able to bless our children and grandchildren. There is a difference between saving and hoarding. Saving implies a future use. Hoarding is amassing wealth for no purpose other than having it; to revel in the fact that it’s there. Such action brought a stern warning from James to these unbelievers. So naturally we as followers of Christ should avoid the same behavior. Our wealth is to be used to take care of ourselves and our families and to further the progress of the gospel. Now, moving back to these unbelievers in James 5, the second reason for impending judgment was that they dealt with their workers deceitfully.
REASONS FOR IMPENDING JUDGMENT:
THEY DEALT WITH THEIR WORKERS DECEITFULLY (V.4)
In v.4 James writes:
4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
Some of this wealth that was being hoarded rightly belonged to the people who worked for these rich men or women. The rich had kept back their workers’ wages. They didn’t pay them for the things they were supposed to be paid for. And this had not escaped the Lord’s notice. The Old Testament law was very clear about how masters or employers were to treat their hired servants. Deuteronomy 24:14-15 says:
14 “You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he is one of your brothers or one of the sojourners who are in your land within your towns. 15 You shall give him his wages on the same day, before the sun sets (for he is poor and counts on it), lest he cry against you to the LORD, and you be guilty of sin.
There was no room for dishonesty is business. A similar truth is seen in Proverbs 20:23 where Solomon writes:
23 Unequal weights are an abomination to the LORD, and false scales are not good.
Whether you were paying a laborer his wages, or trading, or doing any kind of business, God required honesty. The same thing is seen in the New Testament. In Colossians 4:1 Paul says:
1 Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.
This should come as no shocker. God requires honesty in all things; and business is no exception. In fact, we will see that in just a minute. But these rich people were not dealing honestly and their dishonesty was, naturally, known to God. The cries of the harvesters had reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. The “Lord of hosts” is a title for God that means he is the commander of the armies of heaven. It is similar to saying that he is the almighty ruler of everything. And the almighty ruler of everything was preparing to vindicate the poor and oppressed; because their employers had dealt deceitfully with them.
The next reason for impending judgment was the fact that these unrighteous rich people indulged in luxury selfishly.
REASONS FOR IMPENDING JUDGMENT:
THEY INDULGED IN LUXURY SELFISHLY (V.5)
V.5 describes the crime:
5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
The first part of this verse is pretty self-explanatory. The lived with no restrictions. They had more money than they could ever spend so nothing was off limits. The irony here is that they refused to pay their laborers even the small wages that they owed them, and instead hoarded the money dishonestly; but then recklessly spent it on themselves. The story is told of an old Christian mother whose son had recently risen to great power and wealth. The man’s brother, the woman’s other son, was describing his brother’s money, luxurious home, and new cars and ended by declaring, “Bill is certainly getting on in the world.” And the mother looked at her son, then asked sorrowfully, “Which world?” That wise old woman knew the difference between true and false riches. The reality is, however, that most people with significant wealth only spend it on themselves; and if they do give some of it away, it is a small, sometimes ridiculously small portion. It’s hard not to spend money on yourself when you have so much of it. I laughed when I read the story of a man who was a millionaire. He was talking to a colleague and said, “If it wasn’t for my wife, I wouldn’t be a millionaire.” And his friend said, “She must be a wonderful woman.” “Well, I suppose she is,” the man replied. Sensing the rich man’s doubt he asked, “Well, what were you before you met her and became a millionaire?” The wealthy man said somberly, “I was a multimillionaire.” Money has a way of burning a hole in our pockets. And since these people had no financial limit, they indulged selfishly in anything they wanted. Again, we are not saying that it is wrong to spend money on ourselves; we are talking about extreme excess. Extreme excess, that James says made these wealthy people like a fattened calf ready to be butchered. The phrase “fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter” is a graphic picture of the same judgment that has already been pronounced. This brings us to the last and most horrifying reason for impending judgment: they acquired their riches ruthlessly.
REASONS FOR IMPENDING JUDGMENT:
THEY ACQUIRED THEIR RICHES RUTHLESSLY (V.6)
Notice v.6:
6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.
The key to understanding this verse is to understand how the words “condemned” and “murdered” relate to each other. In chapter 2, v.6 James tells us that the unjust rich had a habit of dragging the poor into court. They would use the justice system in an unjust way to rid themselves of the poor. This is what the word “condemned” implies - taking the poor to court and accusing them. Sometimes the result of this was that the poor person was put to death; which James says made these rich people who did this guilty of murder. Now why would they condemn them in the courts? We don’t know. The text doesn’t explicitly say. But I’m sure it had something to do with the poor wanting the money they had earned. Evidently, some of the unrighteous rich didn’t even want to deal with the pleas of their workers to deal honestly with them, so they used their wealth and influence to, in essence, exterminate them. The poor had no power to defend themselves. They did not resist, James writes. The rich and powerful were so consumed with gathering wealth that they stole from their laborers. Even as they refused to pay their workers they spent their money freely on themselves. And eventually, in order to keep this lifestyle from being interrupted, they got rid of anyone they thought was a threat to their way of living. Certainly, these people were in danger of judgment if they did not repent of these atrocities. For any believer then, who reads this warning to these unbelievers, this is a sobering reminder to make sure you control your money and that it doesn’t control you. Paul told true believers how to handle their wealth in 1 Timothy 6:17 when he wrote:
17 As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.
So in light of his coming we must make sure we have a handle on our material possessions; because our attitude towards our wealth reveals, in large part, the genuineness of our faith in Christ. So that was the word of warning to the unjust rich. Let’s see the word of comfort for the hurting.
A WORD OF COMFORT FOR THE HURTING: CHRIST IS COMING (VV.7-11)
James writes in vv.7-8:
7 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
The focus has shifted from the persecutors to the persecuted. James uses the term “brothers” indicating he is once again addressing believers. He calls for patience in the midst of the ruthless persecution they were enduring from the unrighteous rich. And the principles of patience and comfort here can be universally applied by all believers as we face various trials and tribulations. He gives the readers three reasons for lasting hope - three reasons they should be patient, take comfort, and trust in the Lord. The first reason for lasting hope is: the Lord is at hand.
REASONS FOR LASTING HOPE:
THE LORD IS AT HAND (V.8)
Look at v.8:
8 You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
Just like the farmer waits for the rain he needs to produce the harvest, you wait for the coming of the Lord. “Establish your hearts” he writes. In other words, be strengthened and grounded in your faith. Why? Because the Lord’s coming is at hand. It will happen soon. The reality that Christ will soon return to this earth should enable us to endure any hardship. Those whom God saves he keeps; no matter what toils or snares life may bring. We are being guarded through faith, and when Christ returns our suffering and sorrow will disappear. That’s what Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:3-7:
3 …According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God’s power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
These readers were to patiently wait for the coming of the Lord. Because at his coming all of their sufferings would vanish. These believers died before seeing the Lord’s return; and it is still an event yet to come. But even now as they are in paradise with Christ they await the day when all accounts will be settled. That day is coming soon. How soon “soon” is, is yet to be seen; but in terms of the grand scheme of history and eternity, it won’t be long. We also, therefore, can take comfort in the fact that his return is near. That’s the first reason for lasting hope. The second is: the Judge is at the door.
REASONS FOR LASTING HOPE:
THE JUDGE IS AT THE DOOR (V.9)
In v.9 we read:
9 Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.
This is really both a word of hope and a word of caution. The positive to this was that the perfect Judge who would execute justice on the sinful rich was standing at the door. That’s another way of saying that his return is near. So they could take comfort in the fact that their persecution would not go unnoticed. It would be accounted for. On the other hand it was a word of caution not to complain during their time of distress lest they offend the perfect Judge. Even believers will be judged. We will not be condemned to eternal death, but we will be accountable in a lesser way for our actions; whether good or bad. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:10 that:
10 …we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
The rewards we receive or lack thereof will be determined then. 1 Corinthians 3 tells us that:
13 …each one’s work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed by fire, and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done. 14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved…
So just because these readers were believers didn’t mean that Christ was not their Judge. The same is true for us. Christ will be our Judge even as he will be the Judge of unbelievers. The judgment will be different; but the same Judge will preside. So there is a sobering caution here; but also a word of hope. That leads us to the third reason for lasting hope: the patient are blessed.
REASONS FOR LASTING HOPE:
THE PATIENT ARE BLESSED (VV.10-11)
Notice vv.10-11:
10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
In v.10 James mentions the Old Testament prophets who endured all kinds of persecution, yet remained faithful to the proclamation of God’s word. Then in v.11 we read that those who remain steadfast are considered blessed. He follows this by mentioning a specific one of “those” who remained patient during tribulation. And he calls his readers to consider his example and to follow suit. He reminds them of the story of Job. The story of Job, as it remains today, was one of the most popular accounts of the Old Testament. If you are looking to wrestle with the question of why bad things happen to supposedly good people, the book of Job is a good place to start. For in Job we read of a man who loses everything. He loses his property, his children, and his health. Even his wife turns against him. And though he was not perfect, Job handles this tragic time in his life with admirable longsuffering and patience. By the time the story ends Job has twice as much as he started out with and lost. So James says, “Look to the account of Job and see how God cares for his children even in the midst of unthinkable turmoil. And do what Job did. Be patient and trust in the Lord.” We know that no matter what happens to us, eventually we will be immeasurably blessed by God. If not in this life; and likely not in this life; then in our eternal life to come. And we know this because we belong to Christ; and he is compassionate and merciful.
That leads us to our final verse, which really is a sermon within itself; but we’ll consider it briefly this time - v.12:
12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.
We’ve seen a word of warning for the rich and a word of comfort for the hurting. This is a reminder to talk like a believer.
A REMINDER TO TALK LIKE A BELIEVER (V.12)
We won’t get into all of the details and implications of this verse, because they are too many to cover in one sitting; but I want us to notice the ones that directly relate to what we have been considering - and that is living in light of Christ’s return. James is echoing the words of Jesus recorded in Matthew 5. You can refer to that later: Matthew 5:33. He is not prohibiting all oaths. He is not saying that we can never take an oath or make a promise. He saying that our speech should not be littered with them. The phrase “do not swear” is a present imperative prohibition in Greek. That means it is a command to stop doing something that was continually going on. So he is telling his readers to stop taking oaths or swearing continually. The Jews at that time had an elaborate system of oaths. They would swear by just about anything for just about any purpose. James is saying that sort of behavior should not characterize a believer. A believer should be known for his or her honesty. They should simply say “Yes, that is true.” or “No, that is not true.” and that should be good enough. People should know they are being honest because of their character. And why does James remind them of this? Again, because Christ’s return is at hand and if they make such swearing a lifestyle the will be judged for it. They will fall into condemnation. There will be a loss of reward. So again we see a call to back up what we say by how we live. We are not to concoct complicated oaths that try to convince people of the truthfulness of our words - particularly our profession of faith in Christ. We are to live out our faith so that a simple word confirms how we already live.
CONCLUSION
So in light of Christ’s return, James warns the unjust rich, comforts the hurting believers, and reminds them to speak honestly - which is sharply contrasted with how the unbelieving rich dealt with them. And accordingly, we can apply these three things to our lives. We should view our finances in light of his return. We should view our difficulties in light of his return. And we should speak honestly; reflecting personal integrity - in light of his return.
James has given us a lot to think about. Let us pray then, for the grace to view not just these things mentioned, but all things in light of Christ’s imminent return.
